Web 2.0 for Hatzalah, 5T Eruv

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By Sergey Kadinsky

Issue of April 23, 2010/ 9 Iyar, 5770
Their efforts keep the community running, save lives, and enhance the observance of Shabbat.

But with their funds dwindling, two local organizations, Hatzalah of the Rockaways and the Five Towns and the Five Towns Eruv Committee, have turned to the internet to boost their profile in the communities they serve.

“Donations are down, but emergency calls are up,” said Rabbi Elozer Kanner, a coordinator for Hatzalah. “We don’t charge a fee for anything we do.”

Hatzalah will be launching its website on April 25 to coincide with the community-wide Hatzalah barbecue, which is the organization’s largest fundraiser.

Founded 29 years ago by 20 local residents, the Hatzalah of the Rockaways and the Five Towns has grown to 100 volunteers and three bases of operation. “Based on the volume of calls, we have one ambulance in Belle Harbor, three in Far Rockaway, and one in Woodmere,” said Rabbi Kanner.

“It has gotten very complicated,” said Rabbi Kanner. “Our members often go the extra mile, taking specialized calls.” For example, he said, a cancer patient was taken directly to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan instead of a local hospital.

To raise awareness of its work, the Hatzalah website contains halachic guidelines for certain health situations on Shabbat, such as pregnancy, illness, and death. “Our website has been many months in the making,” said Rabbi Kanner.

In all, the cost of running Hatzalah totals above $900,00, with $200,00 used to pay for medical supplies, according to Rabbi Kanner. The volunteers come from a variety of professional backgrounds. Alongside Rabbi Kanner, co-coordinator Mark Gross runs a catering service, and co-coordinator Louis Wolcowitz directs the Oceanview Nursing Home.

Not one to pass up an opportunity to get a message out, Rabbi Kanner also urged local residents to make their address numbers visible. “It is critical that people clearly mark their home addresses, so that at 3 in the morning, our responders can find your home.”

Rabbi Kanner cautioned that Hatzalah’s success is tied to the community’s willingness to help the organization.

“We’re only as prepared as community support allows,” said Rabbi Kanner.

In contrast to the colorful and noisy ambulances, the eruv is a much less visible part of the local Jewish infrastructure. However the eruv impacts many of the Shabbat activities that are often taken for granted.

With its new website, the 5 Towns Eruv Committee hopes to raise awareness of its maintenance of the symbolic Shabbat fence.

“Over the last two years, there have been expansions to the eruv,” said eruv coordinator Baruch Moskowitz. “People were unfamiliar with its new borders.”

Designated by Jewish oral law in the Gemara as a “private” enclosure, an eruv comprises an area in which observant Jews may carry certain items on Shabbat, from one home to another.

“When people can carry, families get together, share meals, and feel a sense of community,” said Moskowitz. “Strollers can be used, and parents can take their kids to shul.”

Using Google Maps, the website delineates the eruv. When clicked on, a pop-up window indicates the last inspection of a particular eruv section. The map also indicates recent expansions of the eruv into North Woodmere and Hewlett Bay Park.

“Our eruv is made of a lot of backyards, and that makes it difficult to maintain,” said Moskowitz. “Tree trimming and storms do a tremendous amount of damage to the eruv.”

The symbolic border is inspected every Thursday afternoon by a team of 25 volunteers from Yeshiva Gedolah of the Five Towns, where Moskowitz serves as executive director.

“They drive around the entire eruv,” said Moskowitz. “It’s a daunting task because the eruv is so vast.” After their trip, the students and volunteers draft reports on the conditions of specific eruv sections.

“In the last big storm, we had 45 strings and six fences down. It cost us $5,000,” said Moskowitz. “There are also the regular costs of strings, tree trimming, and inspection work.”

Moskowitz said that the benefit of living in an eruv community makes the donations worth giving. “It’s much more favorable for a home to be in an eruv,” said Moskowitz. “It makes the community more desirable, and I’d imagine it raises housing values, too.”

For more information on the 5 Towns Eruv Committee , visit www.fivetownseruv.org. For more information on Chevra Hatzalah of The Rockaways and Nassau County, visit www.hatzalahrl.org